Fiona O'Loughlin (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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5. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality if she will provide a report on her recent meeting with the United Kingdom Home Secretary; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7609/17]

Fiona O'Loughlin (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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I am asking for a report from the Minister on the recent her recent meeting with the UK Home Secretary and for her to make a statement on the matter.

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I met with the Home Secretary, Amber Rudd MP, last Monday, 6 February in London. Discussions between the Home Secretary and myself focused on the ongoing co-operation between Ireland and the United Kingdom on criminal justice and security matters. These meetings form part of the regular engagement my Department has with our counterparts in the UK to support ongoing co-operation on these important issues.

As the Deputy knows, formal negotiations have not yet begun following the UK's decision to leave the EU. Any discussions with our UK counterparts will take full account of that, but there is a range of issues that is important for us to discuss. I want to continue the excellent co-operation. I highlighted how important it was, for example, that we had co-operation on the European arrest warrant and other EU justice and home affairs legal instruments. We need to continue the level of co-operation we have at present after the UK exits the EU. The precise mechanisms by which we will be able to do that are not clear at present, but I wanted to highlight how well that has worked. We do not want to go back to the old ways of doing it.

We also spoke about the common travel area, its importance to the people of both Ireland and the UK and how vital it is in the context of Northern Ireland. When I was in London, I also had a separate meeting with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, James Brokenshire, MP. Our discussion was very much focused on the common travel area, its importance in the context of the peace process and the need for all parties to re-engage in the political process in Northern Ireland.

My meeting with the Home Secretary was very helpful, focusing primarily on the criminal justice issues. There is a huge amount of EU legislation and both Irish and UK legislation that will be impacted. My Department has been examining this over the last number of months. It has done very extensive work on examining the implications for this legislation given the Brexit context.

Fiona O'Loughlin (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister for her reply. I acknowledge the ongoing co-operation that exists between her and the UK Home Secretary. The common travel area and the rights of Irish people North and South of the Border to free movement on the island of Ireland are hugely important.

There has to be concern about the rights of Irish citizens that are living in the UK as well. I do accept that the mechanisms are not in place yet with regard to Brexit. However, from looking at the recent White Paper on Brexit from the UK Government, I would have some concerns. For example, the priority given to the strong and historic ties with Ireland and to maintaining the common travel area is a good thing. However, there is a contradiction where it specifically says "while protecting the integrity of the UK's immigration system". The UK pledge to maintain the travel area comes with a strong qualifier. It may even be a disqualifier.

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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It has long been the case that as part of the common travel area arrangements, Ireland and the United Kingdom co-operate very closely on jointly securing the external border of the common travel area. We will continue to co-operate and strengthen that co-operation in the future. The common travel area has been in existence since Irish Independence. It allows freedom of travel between the two jurisdictions. It is a unique arrangement. It is extremely important that we get that across to other member states because Ireland remains an extremely committed member of the European Union. I met with Mr. Barnier to discuss that and to go into the detail of how it operates. We have a huge amount of co-operation and we do not see that changing.

I welcome the publication of the British White Paper, which provides further details on the issues addressed by the Prime Minister in May. The Deputy raises a particular point about that speech. I would say that the analysis of the issues raised and the assessment of their potential implications for Ireland is continuing. I believe the specific section on Ireland-UK relations reflects the strong ties between our two countries; it is specifically noted.

Fiona O'Loughlin (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Tánaiste for the ongoing work in this area, which is of huge importance to us on many levels.

With regard to another issue in the Brexit White Paper on controlling immigration, the language is very definitive in that it explicitly states: "We will have control over the number of EU nationals [Irish people are EU nationals] coming to the UK.". It further states: "In future, therefore, the Free Movement Directive will no longer apply and the migration of EU nationals [which we are] will be subject to UK law.". I believe those are conflicting priorities. I put it to the Tánaiste that given the interpretation the British Prime Minister puts on the Brexit referendum, it is a mandate to control immigration, as she has stated many times, and that the priority given to links with Ireland will play second fiddle to the commitment to limit EU immigration. That may have unintended devastating consequences for the people of Ireland, north and south of the Border.

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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As I said, it has been an absolute priority at every engagement Irish Ministers have had with their UK counterparts to highlight our priorities regarding Brexit. They are about the common travel area and maintaining the peace process. We have had a variety of statements from UK Ministers highlighting how much they value the common travel area. Article 50 has not been triggered yet. There will be ongoing discussions on this issue but the commitment has been very clear. We will continue to prioritise and highlight in all our discussions the importance of the common travel area. I am reassured by my meetings with both the Home Secretary and the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland that they both value and understand the importance of the common travel area to our two countries and our people.